Better Testing Through Testing
I Don’t Like Testing Either!
Most people, including myself, dread testing. I get it! You get anxious, nervous, and all worked up... most of the time over nothing! If you study for the test and pay attention in class, you should do okay on your exam.
But what if I told you that testing is actually a good thing. Crazy, right?!
This is known as “Better Testing Through Testing.” A test alters what we remember and changes how we subsequently organize that knowledge in our minds. Testing is essentially studying of a different and powerful kind. In fact, testing yourself on material strengthens the retrieval skills of your mind.
You probably don’t like the idea of having a quiz in class every week on new material leading up to the final exam. You might ask yourself, “Why can’t we just take one final exam?” This is because each quiz is essentially a study guide for the final exam that increases the retrieval strength of the content. Benedict Carey, author of How We Learn, states that when you receive prompt feedback on a quiz, it is most beneficial for your knowledge. Testing is “Retrieval Practice.”
Bjork came up with the idea of Desirable Difficulty. This states that the harder the brain works to remember, the greater the remembering (retrieval + storage strength).
Ballard says that testing improves subsequent testing, also known as “Reminiscence.”
Which Types of Testing Work Better?
It all depends!
Ward Cunningham says that multiple choice questions are used to test student’s knowledge of a broad range of content.
True and False Questions are more useful in terms of making retrieval of information easier. True and false questions provide more context clues.
In short answer questions, students are forced to put questions into their own words and think more about what they have learned… “Desirable Difficulty”.
Matching questions are designed to assess recognition and recall information. Ward Cunningham said “Most often used in courses where acquisition of detailed knowledge is an important goal”
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Interesting. How will you apply this to your practice?
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